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Dad in referee uniform spurs high school football lawsuit

Posted On: Nov. 20, 2018 12:29 PM CST

Football referee

The father of a Chicago-area football player is at the center of a lawsuit filed Friday against the Illinois High School Association by a rival school that claims his wearing a referee uniform influenced the game.

The association, which oversees the sport for several high schools, is accused of allowing the dad to be involved in calls the referee crew made though he was not officiating the Nov. 10 game between his son’s school, Nazareth Academy, and Simeon High School, according to an article in Monday’s Chicago Tribune.

The father allegedly spoke to the referees, stood on the sidelines and was later seen alongside referees in an area where only officials are supposed to be, according to the lawsuit filed by the Simeon Alumni Association, the Blue Machine — the Simeon football team’s booster club — and a handful of parents, according to the article.

The association has not responded to the lawsuit.

The father, however, is still making calls, responding on Facebook to criticism of him being involved in the game by saying, “I did what was needed to make sure Naz won,” according to screenshots included in the lawsuit.

In another comment, the father tells someone, “I didn’t make one bad call. I made sure the best team won.”